Lupin III

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Alternative Titles

Synonyms: Lupin Sansei

Japanese: ルパン三世

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Information

Type: Manga

Volumes: 14

Chapters: 109

Status: Finished

Published: Jul 7, 1967 to Apr 1972

Genres: Action, Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Mystery

Theme: Adult Cast

Demographic: Seinen

Serialization: Manga Action

Authors: Monkey Punch (Story & Art)

Statistics

Score: 7.31¹ (scored by 1,193 users)

¹ indicates a weighted score.

Ranked: #4661²

² based on the top manga page. Please note that 'R18+' titles are excluded.

Popularity: #4295

Members: 5,102

Favorites: 100

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Wikipedia

7.31

Ranked #4661Popularity #4295Members 5,102

MangaManga ActionMonkey Punch (Story & Art)

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Volumes: /14

Chapters: /109

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Synopsis

International man of mystery and master thief extraordinaire, Lupin III comes from a long line of high stakes bandits, all committed to stealing from the rich and giving to themselves. Fortunately, Lupin tends to avoid robbing society's virtuous and, instead, targets some pretty shady characters.

Of course, he partners with some pretty shady characters as well: Daisuke Jigen is an ex-mafia hitman who carries himself with a somber demeanor, his trademark black fedora tilted forward to hide his eyes. Goemon Ishikawa is a cipher-like swordsman with samurai-ish overtones who mysteriously fades in and out of Lupin's exploits. Fujiko Mine is the object of Lupin's affections, but, since she is a thief herself, the duo's romance more than occasionally clashes with their competition for big scores.

The global police force, Interpol, and in particular the tenacious Inspector Zenigata, long to capture Lupin and his gang. Zenigata's relationship with the eponymous master thief is a complicated one, characterized by mutual respect laced with utter disdain. The two have even worked together when it's served both their interests, but they understand that when the crisis ends, they must resume their former wariness and animosity toward each other.

(Source: Tokyopop)

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Characters

Lupin III

Main

Jigen, Daisuke

Main

Mine, Fujiko

Main

Ishikawa XIII, Goemon

Main

Zenigata, Kouichi

Main

Lupin II

Supporting

Fake Lupin

Supporting

Pycal

Supporting

Mamou, Kyosuke

Supporting

Reviews

Sep 5, 2019

Count_Cuckula

Recommended

I will try to be brief because Lupin III is a simple yet effective manga. The story follows the world's greatest thief, Arsène Lupin III. He is the grandson of the notorious thief, Arsène Lupin, who was a character created by French author, Maurice Leblanc in the early 20th century. The Lupin III manga is episodic. Each chapter is it's own story and it usually depicts Lupin and "friends" trying to steal various items whether it be fancy jewels or other expensive items he wishes to chase after simply for the thrill of it.

He ... is joined by an array of characters such as Jigen (gunman), Goemon (Samurai), Fujiko (criminal and love interest) and Inspector Zenigata. Keep in mind, some characters are introduced later in the manga. Lupin is technically your main protagonist but he's not really a hero. In the anime shows/films, he is often portrayed as a eccentric hero despite the fact he's a criminal. He tends to help people more (mainly females) as well as going head to head with villains who are more devious than himself which inherently places him in the hero role. In the manga, Lupin cares only for his target. Later on you see some depth to his character where he shows his more human side, but you mainly see his dark side early on.

Lupin is a cold blooded criminal who will kill and rape whoever he pleases just because it's what he enjoys doing. Whether or not the characters he's hurting are innocent is irrelevant to him which is why the manga is so fascinating. Normally you would hate a character like Lupin but here you don't, and the brilliance of that goes to Monkey Punch who is responsible for this manga. Despite everything I said, Lupin III is a comedy through and through. Everything has humor to it even if the situation is dire. The characters are rather quippy and use a lot of word play. Characters always have a funny retort to everything and the exaggerated cartoony Mad-esque facial expressions really enhance the comedy in these scenes.

The whole look of the manga is presented in a very Western fashion. Monkey Punch considered Mad Magazine a huge influence and it shows in his manga. Characters are weirdly proportioned and have oddly shaped heads with often cartoon-like expressions which I mentioned earlier. It's very refreshing to look at considering the large amount of artists who more often have a very samey art style and it shows in many popular manga.

In conclusion, the manga is incredible. It's my favorite version of Lupin III and I've been following the series for almost 20 years. I can't recommend it enough especially if you enjoy black comedies. If you're someone who enjoys the more family friendly Cagliostro/Miyazaki type of Lupin stories, don't read this. It's irreverent and not something younger fans should check out. This ain't your grandma's Lupin...Well technically it is your grandma's Lupin..If you're grandma was a bad bitch with a shotgun in one hand and a cigar in the other. 10/10 manga. It's hysterically funny and easy to pick up and read. Check it out if you truly like Lupin or someone who enjoys caper stories.

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Jan 10, 2022

giffica

Recommended

Preliminary (12/109 eps)

My review will be based on the English release of Lupin's Greatest Heists, the collection released following the passing of MonkeyPunch, and thus is only on the selected 12 chapters, meant to introduce a new reader to Lupin.

I have never read Lupin, nor watched anything with him, and I found Lupin to be quite an interesting manga. While it's rough around the edges and certainly leans on the cruder side, something I am not particularly into, the originality of the character and writing of Monkeypunch keeps the story readable and well paced. Much of the story is not necessarily original, but something about Lupin ...

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May 2, 2024

Whis0

Not Recommended

I intially read Lupin III Greatest Heist and after greatly enjoying that I thought I should go read the original manga. However there was a problem. A problem that still persist 1/3rd of the way in (I have now read the whole thing and it continues the whole way throughout.) I can't fucking tell what's going on. Ever. While the art is genuinely phenominal the pacing and clarity is absolutely abysmal. After reading most chapters if you put a gun to my head and said, "Explain what happened and how Lupin stole the thing." I would be dead ...

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Poll: Lupin III Chapter 2 Discussion uwotnow - Jan 29	0 replies	by uwotnow »» Jan 29, 6:07 PM
Poll: Lupin III Chapter 1 Discussion Wolfie219 - Jul 18, 2023	1 replies	by uwotnow »» Jan 29, 5:18 PM
How much mature content is in the manga? removed-user - Nov 18, 2017	1 replies	by Zainou86 »» Mar 3, 2018 6:06 AM

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